JBS leads exports, but shares are falling.

247_JBS leads the ranking of exports among Brazilian meatpacking companies. Through May, the company exported US$1,1 billion in meat, an average of US$220 million per month. This represents a 167% increase over the same period last year. In the first five months of 2010, JBS traded US$409 million with international countries. In addition to its top ranking in the sector, the company appears as one of the 40 largest exporters of the year according to the list from the Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade (MDIC). This positive performance, however, is not reflected in the stock market. JBS shares have fallen 28% this year, compared to a nearly 12% devaluation of the Ibovespa index. The company's high debt is one of the factors that has worried investors.

In the MDIC (Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade) ranking, Bertin's businesses, incorporated by JBS, are listed separately. BR Foods is another company that appears disaggregated in the Ministry's data. Sadia and Perdigão's sales appear at US$993 million and US$968 million, respectively, in the first five months of this year. They are in second and third place in the ranking of meatpacking companies. If BR Foods, which is awaiting a decision from CADE (Administrative Council for Economic Defense) regarding the merger of its businesses, were to add the value negotiated by its two companies abroad, the result of US$1,9 billion would place the company among the most important in the country, in fourth place overall behind Vale, Petrobras, and Bunge. On the stock exchange, BR Foods' shares are down 5,6% this year.